By arguing that the current iteration of American copyright law is broken in several respects, and by proposing extreme solutions, the rogue document debilitates the talking points of institutional copyright holders and their agencies such as the RIAA. Anyone who has been following the hardened rhetoric over what copyright should be in a copy-share digital world will be startled by the accusatory language and sharply reformist intent of this document.

Some of Britain’s leading furniture makers have claimed more than 6,000 British companies are under threat if the Government pushes ahead with controversial changes to copyright law.

UK furniture manufacturing – a £7billion industry employing almost 100,000 people – has been put under pressure by Government plans to impose EU rules on the sector.

Under the current law, furniture designed by famous names such as Charles Eames can be reproduced freely 25 years after being created.
Not sitting comfortably: Makers wouldn't be able to copy designs such as this by Charles Eames and Ray Eames

Not sitting comfortably: Makers wouldn't be able to copy designs such as this by Charles Eames and Ray Eames

This allows makers across the UK to produce and sell replicas of well-known table and chair designs at affordable prices, a practice that accounts for a large part of the industry.

But the Government plans to extend copyright protection for designs deemed ‘artistic’ until 70 years after the death of the creator.

As a thought experiment, what if the constitution of the U.S. was amended so that no idea (with exceptions only for government use, like currency) could be protected from copy or use beyond January 1, 2035 for more than a five-year period. After a five-year span, any patent, software license, copyright, software NDA or other intellectual property agreement would expire. (This is not an entirely new idea, but would have had significant recent ramifications if it had been enacted in the past.) Specific terms are up for debate, but in this experiment businesses must have time to try to adjust to sell services and make the services good enough to compete with other businesses offering the same basic products. Microsoft can sell a five-year-old variant of OSX, Apple can sell Windows 2030. Cars, computers and phones would, or at least could, still be made, but manufacturers would be free to use any technology more than five years old or license new technology for a five-year competitive edge. Movie, TV and book budgets would have to adjust to the potential five-year profit span, although staggered episode or chapter releases would be legal. Play 'What if' with me. What would be the downsides? What would be the upsides?"

Our modern era doesn't just celebrate stories about gods and demi-gods; we have a whole host of new mythic figures that we obsess about, from Luke Skywalker to Superman to Captain Kirk. But who owns these legends?

IN A move described as “remarkable” by Joycean scholars, the singer Kate Bush has said she has been given permission to use Molly Bloom’s famous soliloquy from Ulysses in a song to be released next month.